A woman who didn't have anything to wear for a Beyoncé concert turned to her dad, who tailored the perfect dress in about 30 minutes.
Geselle Valera, 27, was excited to attend the Renaissance World Tour at MetLife stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, on July 29. Although Valera purchased tickets eight months prior, she didn't plan her outfit until the last minute.
"The friend I was going with told me, 'You have to look the part,'" Valera tells TODAY.com.
Valera considered wearing silver — a festive request from the singer to her fans to honor her Sept. 4 birthday — but metallic options were limited.
Valera's sister suggested asking their dad, Jose Peralta, for help.
The 63-year-old tailor learned to sew when he was a 3-year-old boy growing up in the Dominican Republic, and his love for fashion has saved his family from various wardrobe emergencies. When Valera's sister got engaged at a last-minute family function, her dad tailored Valera’s outfit minutes before the event, along with the groomsmen's suits for the wedding.
"If I'm going out and a button pops or a zipper breaks, he whips out the sewing machine," says Valera.
The Beyoncé concert would be no less challenging, decided Valera. "I knew he wouldn't say no."
Valera settled on her concert look — inspired by a multicolored David Koma dress of Beyoncé's — and paid $30 for two dresses on Amazon. Then, with 24-hours to spare, she brought the garments to Peralta's New Jersey home.
Dad got working, removing the top part of one dress and turning it into a side skirt for the other, while Valera filmed it for her Instagram account.
The end result was a strikingly accurate re-creation of Beyoncé's designer look.
"I felt so proud wearing the outfit because most people at the concert were in silver and (mine) was one many hadn’t thought to re-create yet," says Valera. "It set me apart."
"I felt so proud wearing the outfit..."
Valera says a friend was so impressed by her father's craftsmanship, that he asked Peralta to make him the exact same dress for Beyoncé's D.C. show, which he did.
Peralta tells TODAY.com in an interview translated by his daughter from Spanish to English that he made the dress with love.
"I've lived off fashion, fabric and trends my whole life," says Peralta. "It's my calling."
Peralta says his favorite fashion memories happened 30 years ago when he made clothes for his wife, Maria, who moved to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic while he waited three years for his immigration process to be approved.
"He shipped the clothes to New York City, where she lived," says Valera of her parents.
"With his talent he was able to help our American dreams come true," says Valera. "The extra money he made (from tailoring) helped fund our education and lifestyle."
Peralta was "proud" to help his daughter look her best for Beyoncé.
"He is an angel," says Valera.